Tips and Tools for Social Workers

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has received numerous member inquiries about the status of Medicare waivers for telehealth services. There has been some confusion centered around the status of telehealth flexibilities. Most telehealth flexibilities were scheduled to end on December 31, 2024; however, Congress implemented telehealth waivers January 2025 and extended the waivers until March 31, 2025.

NASW Task Force for Serious Illness: Palliative and End of Life Care is please to announce the attached draft practice standards for public comment, Serious Illness: Palliative and End of Life Care. The draft standards offer guidance to social workers in all settings where palliative and end of life services occur. They offer guidance to social workers and serve as benchmark for services social workers provide. We value your input and encourage you to review the document

Currently, most of the Medicare waivers that were developed during the COVID-19 pandemic are scheduled to end on March 31, 2025. This includes the geographic and origination site restrictions and the in-person requirements for telehealth services. Unless Congress passes legislation to extend the waivers, clinical social workers and other Medicare providers may be required to adhere to pre-COVID Medicare reimbursement guidelines. This may significantly impact clinical social workers and other providers who have closed their in-person offices and developed telehealth practices.

On November 1, 2024, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released updates to the Quality Payment Program (QPP) as part of the 2025 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). These updates are also available in the QPP Resource Library. Established under the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), the QPP provides tools and resources for Medicare providers.

In late 2024 the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS). This 1,348-page rule updates policies and payments for clinical social workers (CSWs) and other Medicare providers; these changes, in turn, affect health coverage for beneficiaries. Changes related to payments and other Medicare Part B policies addressed in the PFS take effect on or after January 1, 2025.

Due to various traumatic incidents involving law enforcement and people with mental health and substance use disorders there has been a heightened urgency to immerse social workers into the legal system, specifically within law enforcement agencies. NASW recognizes the importance of social work and law enforcement collaboration efforts and maintains resources related to the subject matter.